By Kira Grunenberg

Today marks the launch of Apple’s newest mobile operating system, iOS 7. Seven, for many, is considered a lucky number. That said, how perfect is it for Soundwave, the app straight out of lucky Ireland, to also be churning out a major release and redesign alongside Apple?

If you have not heard about Soundwave yet, now is definitely an opportune time to get on board with the worldwide wave of what we originally referred to as, “musical jet-setting.” This enthusiastic startup has proven to continue innovating, cranking out creative and technical improvements. Our last coverage with them was just over one month ago and they are already back into the mix with a complete app overhaul focused primarily on taking advantage of iOS 7′s new capabilities and aesthetics.

Here are the four key changes iOS Soundwave users will get to experience starting today:

Soundwave iOS 7 Update

The Jump to 64-bit

While the newest iOS does not need the upcoming incarnations of the iPhone to be utilized, one of the big features being promoted by Apple’s iPhone 5S model is its move ahead to a 64-bit user and app experience. Thanks to the fully accessible SDK for this new iOS, app developers were able to easily prepare to meet this evolution. The end result for users is a total boosting of app efficiency. Results for important elements, like Soundwave’s main activity feed, will refresh and appear even faster than before. Knowing songs are playing globally, virtually every minute of everyday, the increased immediacy brings Soundwave that much closer to a genuine, real-time music sharing experience.

Adaptive Multitasking

Since Soundwave is already ahead of the curve with its ability to fetch song plays right out of Apple’s native music player – among many other playback engines – the team knows users are liable to be doing many other things on their mobile devices while listening to tunes. This in mind, Soundwave is likely to be minimized while users listen and go about their day but the app will be able to keep up with its key purpose of capturing the tracks users are playing on their devices and the demands of the average mobile multi-tasker won’t inhibit the flow of syncing.

Motion Effects

The integration of motion effects in iOS 7 translates to Soundwave’s new ability to take shadow interference out of the app’s aesthetics. Similar to the way iOS 7 is intended to improve the general iPhone user experience, the structure of the Soundwave app will now be built on a system highlighting depth and a visual hierarchy that is more natural and intuitive.

UI Upgrading to Match iOS 7

Refining the visual experience of Soundwave on multiple levels, the new user interface of Soundwave looks nothing like the old. Tint, blur and transparency are the three main changes introduced to Soundwave’s look. They not only make the app feel like new but improve browsing through better information organization. Blur effects make it possible for song and artist info to be laid over artwork. Tinting color brings out interactive elements but occupies less screen space. Turning up transparency allows Soundwave to emulate iOS 7′s new color matching scheme… the app’s navigation elements taking on whatever color is most prominent in a user’s active song artwork.

Soundwave’s iOS 7 update is available now and can be obtained with the tap of a finger over in the iTunes App Store.

** since posting, Soundwave is now featured in the Apple App Store as “Designed for iOS 7,” as well as in their “Best New Apps” category

Kira is an old school music nerd with a love for all things creative; always searching for music’s common ground. She graduated with an M.A. in Performing Arts Administration from New York University. Drop her a tweet @shadowmelody1

Comments

comments